The Entertainer
by can-i-break-the-fourth-wall
Summary: Nezumi is determined to be free of Inukashi's hold on him. He's worked with her for years to pay off his father, Rikiga, but it wasn't getting to be too much. But Nezumi has found a way out. What happens when he leaves west block to become an entertainer? And why is his new landlord such an airhead? ShionxNezumi AU
1. Chapter 1

Clean. That was all he ever did, he had to make a living somehow. In this house he was known as Eve, but that was nowhere near his real name.

When he ws younger, his village was burned down by No.6. He escaped all alone, his family reduced to ashes in the devastating fire. The little boy, Nezumi, survived for days by himself, living off the forest hunting for prey at night, and in the morning looking for a safe place to stay. He was a boy of the forest.

One morning, Nezumi had been walking around the edge of a great wall, a wall he would later find out to be No.6. He picked up a cloth from an area close to the wall. Marveling at the texture and the feeling of the cloth beneath his hands, he never saw the man coming.

He was a big man, but not overly so. He had brown hair atop of his head and a scraggly brown beard. He would be the one to take Nezumi in. He would be the one that Nezumi would eventually call father. Rikiga was his name.

Rikiga showed Nezumi love in the way that only he could. By dressing him up as a girl.

It was how Nezumi repaid Rikiga for taking him in. He would wear dresses and perform plays for the community of West Block, where he know lived. He would sing some nights, a beautiful song which many would come to here. On a good night he would make five silver coins, giving three to Rikiga and keeping two for himself.

He liked it. He liked being upon the stage and performing for all the lost souls of West Block. He loved losing himself in the plays and escaping the real world and entering th makeshift world of Shakespeare. While all was good on stage, things at his home weren't as well.

Rikiga often rented him out to a friend of his, Inukashi, the Dog Keeper. She was always mean to Nezumi, but whenever he would complain to Rikiga, he would simply laugh it off and say that it was all in his head.

"Nezumi! I need you to wash these dogs! If you don't get them all done correctly within the hour, I will make you sleep outside again!"

Nezumi sighed and put down his book, Hamlet. He wrapped it up in the cloth he had found so long ago, a super fiber cloth, and hid it behind the bushes where he hid his few possessions.

He led the dogs to a nearby spring, the only source of water in the West Block. He started to fill a tub full of water, preparing the dog's bath. Starting With the biggest dog, Nezumi started washing. The dog relaxed beneath his hands, his long, thin, calloused fingers, his hands moving confidently throughout the long hair of the dog. His mouth opened of its own accord as he started singing.

Kaze wa tamashii o Sara, hito wa kokoro o ubau  
daichi yo, amekaze yo, ten yo, hikari yo,  
koko ni subete o todomete  
koko ni subete o Todome  
koko de ikite...

He called another dog over, and another one, as he continued to sing his haunting requirem.

Tamashii yo, kokoro yo, air yo omoi yo  
koko ni kaeri koko ni todomatte...

"Nezumi! Where are you?"

Nezumi snapped out of his daze, his eyes instantly glancing towards the old abandoned hotel.

"Those dogs better be clean!"

Nezumi got up and dust himself off quickly. He looked around and sighed in relief when he realized that he had indeed washed all of Inukashi's mutts.

"Well, it seems as though you're actually good for something. Come on in, its getting dark, and i need someone to feed the dogs and clean up their messes before bed. Come."

Nezumi followed without a word.

" Nezumi! I need you to go to the market for me before it closes. We just need the basics, don't go spending all my money. Now hurry up!"

nezumi ran outside and fetched his super fiber cloth from his hiding spot. He carefully put his belongings back into hiding and started his trek to the market.

It was times like these, where Nezumi was alone, that he loved the most. Times when he could just think to himself and to wallow in his self pity.

I hate No.6. I hate Inukashi, i hah everything! If No.6 hadn't burned down my village, i could still be alive with my mother and father and sister.

The burns on his back started to ache as he thought, longingly, about the life he could have had.

"Oh Eve!" A voice called to him from an alley way.

Nezumi smirked to himself. He didn't have time to deal with this harlot, not today.

"So sorry, but I'm on a run. I can't indulge today."

He continued to walk in the opposite direction, his mind a mental map of where

He needed to go.

By the time he got food and a few pieces of clothing for Inukashi, the sky was a purple color, the color of old bruises starting to heal. On the stall of one merchant was a poster.

The paper had obviously come from No.6, the ink on it clear from where he was standing.

Wanted: an entertainer  
Will pay well.

Nezumi went up to the merchant of the stall and nodded as he took the ad off and shoved it in his pocket.

Nezumi was late.

"Dammit Nezumi, it doesn't take that long! What were you doing?"

"I'm sorry Inuk-"

"Sorry? Sorry does not explain why it took you so long. Rikiga should've just kept you. I have no need for someone who doesn't work."

Nezumi reached into his pocket and handed the sheet of paper to Inukashi.

"This is why I'm late. I was wondering if maybe i could go into No.6 tomorrow."

Inukashi looked at him suspiciously. She threw the paper down back at Nezumi.

"I'm tired of seeing your face around here anyway. Fine, you can go if you finish all the things i need for you to do by noon tomorrow. If not, you have to stay here with the dogs! Tonight you'll sleep outside with the older dogs. I'm out of room for tonight."

Nezumi sucked into the back of the hotel and out the back door. He walked around dogs and stepped over them until he reached a somewhat warm corner in the back of the courtyard. He sat down and brought his knees up to his chin, and stared out not moving.

Dogs came up to him and laid their heads in his lap, on his feet, a small one even crawled on his back. Nezumi smiled at the attempt the dogs tried to warm him. He pulled out some meat he stole from the market and handed some to each dog.

"One day", he said,

"I'll be free of this place."


	2. Chapter 2

Shion was bored. He was sitting alone in his room, cold air drifting in from his open window. He got off of his bed covered in books, and walked to the window to shut it. As Shion closed the window, he stared at the sky, a deep purple color. He sighed to himself and latched the door.

Walking to his bathroom he stopped to pick up a pencil from the floor. A minute later, Shion stood in front of his bathroom mirror.

He looked at his pale white skin, cold beneath his deft fingers. His eyes stared back, a deep red glowing bright against his skin. He trailed his fingers across the thin red scar that wrapped around his neck, then around his torso, and entangled his right leg. Shion shook his head, and strands of pure white hair fell onto his head.

This was Shion's appearance, yet he still wasn't used to it. He liked to remember the times when he was still somewhat normal. He used to have brown hair, put ever since he was attacked by parasitic bees, he has Been this way. If he was a freak before, he certainly was a freak now.

Shion picked up the picture on his mirror. In the picture was him as regular Shion standing next to his best friend, Safu.

Shion walked downstairs to help his mother out in the bakery. She had owned the bakery for two years, deciding to open it after he was removed from the gifted course at his school. She got a lot of customers in her little bakery, her muffins and cherry cake being the top two sellers.

"Okay, Shion," she started.

"I need you to start working on mixing some more muffin batter- enough for about two dozen. Blueberry muffins, you got that? Good."

She answered the question for Shion and pushed him into the kitchen. He heard the ringing of the bell and knew that his mom had officially opened shop for the day. Putting a red apron that brought out his eyes, he tied it around his back and started working.

He mixed the flour and the sugar in a big mixing bowl. He added milk and eggs and a few handfuls of blueberries. He heard the bell above the door ring and knew the first customer had arrived. He ignored the chattering outside and kept focused on his take.

Meanwhile in the West Block...

"Dang it Inukashi! You know I won't be able to finish all this work before this afternoon. You did this on purpose, didn't you? Why can't you act like a fucking human and not a bitch for once in your worthless life?" Nezumi, was beyond angry, he was pissed off.

"Excuse me? I gave you shelter, the least you could do is be grateful! I took you in after nobody wanted you. After Rikiga left it was my idea to take care of you! I kept you safe!"

"You call sleeping outside every night safe? You call going out to do your dirty work safe? Ha, what a joke!"

" A joke? Just like those stupid books you're hiding outside."

Nezumi was homeless, again. He had nowhere to go. He gathered his books hidden behind the bushes. He had a heartfelt and tearful goodbye with the dogs, and without a look back he left.

He looked up at the sky, the sweltering sun towering over him, heating his body and making him sweaty. It was noon, and he had completely forgotten about the audition.

Nezumi started to run towards the remains of the great wall of No.6. He had to make it there in time...

Ten minutes later, he found himself in front of a building, a school building. There were arrows on the building guiding him towards the audition room.

The room was not how he expected a school room to look.

It was plain- well at least the walls were. The desks were more technological, each one having a built in computer. In the corner was a black, grand piano.

Nobody was in the room. Stepping over the threshold, Nezumi gaited in. He headed towards the piano, laying his stuff on the floor next to the bench. He sat down on the small chair and closed his eyes, remembering the days when his mother taught him how to play. He cracked his fingers and played a middle c, making sure the piano was playable. After trying out a few more notes, Nezumi started to play.

His hands moved over the keys swiftly, his touch lingering on each one, hesitant, as if he never wanted the note to end. He got lost in his playing, all of his emotions- anger over Inukashi, sadness over losing his father, Depression over the ashes o his village- he let them all out.

The melody was haunting and angry, the sound of thunder during a storm. He sang along, creating his own words as he went along.

"Oh,  
it rains here  
washing what we held dear  
I covered my eyes in fear  
too late to run.  
The fire it burns all,  
a life beyond the wall,  
someone save us all."

As the song drifted off, he heard clapping coming from the doorway. He turned around and in a flash, he was in a fighting stance, his knife held in his right hand.

Standing in the doorway were two people, school age, Nezumi assumed. They were dressed casually, each one of them wearing jeans. The girl stood with her hands behind her back, her black hair falling just too her neck. She wore an overside green sweater with a brown squiggle line going around the upper torso. She was plain, nothing that Nezumi would ever remember if asked to describe her again. But the mail to her left on the other hand was… unique.

His skin was a sickly pale and white shade, a long, winding, red snake covered his wrists to his arms to his neck to his face. His hair was white too, shockingly so, the sunlight entering from the room reflecting off of it making it hard to look too long. His eyes were bright red, almost demonic, but set of nicely with the overly friendly smile he had on his face. His cardigan was light blue, and gave him a boyish look. He was younger than Nezumi.

"Hi!" His voice was nasally and too chirpy. Nezumi didn't like it and winced as he made introductions.

"I'm Shion and this is my friend Safu! You're a wonderful player and singer! Please tell me that you came here for the entertainer auditions!" Nezumi barely shook his head, trying hard not to act rude and cover his ears. Safu spoke next.

"You're the only one who has even showed up. There isn't much natural talent here on No.6, so I'm assuming you're not from here. Where are you from and what is your name?"

His name? Where he was from? These were simple questions, but neither had a simple answer.

"My name is Eve, and I'm an orphan from West Block."

"An orphan? Oh, I'm so sor-"

"Your status won't make anybody pity you. We have a few of those here too, so don't feel so special." Safu interrupted Shion. She handed Nezumi a piece of paper with an address on it.

"This is where you'll be playing. You'll get paid 6 gold coins per gig, not including what tips you get, and there are at least four or five a week. This address is the address of Shion's mother's bakery. She's trying to lure in a few more customers, and hopefully you'll do just that. How soon can you start?"

This girl pissed him off. He hasn't even accepted the offer yet, and she was already being bossy and demanding. But six gold coins…and tips. He'd be stupid not to take this job. And it wasn't to mainland, her bakery lied towards the outside of the town. If he needed to, it would be a 7 minute run back to West Block. But where would he stay? He forgot that Inukashi kicked him out. Whenever Rikiga passed, he left him his apartment, but it was too far away from the bakery. He needed somewhere closer.

"Okay." Nezumi pocketed the address and gathered his stuff from next to the piano bench. Snafu walked out of the room first, Leaving Nezumi and the weird flower kid alone.

"I'm so glad you'll be working with me! You'll love it, and mother makes the best cherry cake ever! Oh- would you like a ride back to your home? Snafu would mind, but since I'm driving it's okay." Nezumi shook his head. Why would he ride with this airhead?

"No thanks. I'll call a cab or something." A cab? To where?

Shion's face fell a little, but it brightened back up as he said bye.

"Your eyes…" Shion trailed off. He brushed a piece of hair from Nezumi's face, the rat too shocked to protest. Shion shook his head and exited behind Safu.

What was wrong with this kid?


End file.
